Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE: SPG) has announced that its Chelsea division opened Yeoju Premium Outlets, the first Premium Outlet Center(R) in South Korea. The project is located on Expressway 50 - a heavily traveled east-west highway - approximately 36 miles southeast of Seoul in Gyeonggi Province. Population within a 40-mile radius of Yeoju Premium Outlets is approximately nine million people.
The 250,000-ft² first phase of the project opened fully leased to 120 tenants including A. Testoni, Adidas, Anna Molinari, Anna Sui, Armani, Bogner, Brooks Brothers, Burberry, Callaway Golf, CK Jeans, Coach, Columbia Sportswear, Diesel, DKNY, Dolce & Gabbana, Dunhill, Ermenegildo Zegna, Escada, Furla, Givenchy, Gucci, Hugo Boss, Levi's, LeSportsac, Mango, Marks & Spencer, MaxMara, Nike, NineWest, Oilily, Ping Golf, Polo Ralph Lauren, Puma, Reebok, Royal Copenhagen, Salvatore Ferragamo, Samsonite, ST Dupont, St. John, Theory, Tommy Hilfiger, TSE, Valentino and Vivienne Westwood. Approximately 90% of the center has been leased to international brands and the balance to Korean domestic brands including Bean Pole, Kim Young Joo, Kuho, Solid Homme and Hazzys. The center also includes nine restaurant and food tenants. The project is expandable by approximately 100,000 ft² of GLA.
Yeoju Premium Outlets is the first project to be completed by Shinsegae Chelsea Co., Ltd., a joint venture between Simon (50%) and Shinsegae Co., Ltd. and Shinsegae International Co., Ltd. (together 50%). Shinsegae is one of Korea's leading retailers, having opened the country's first department store in 1930. It currently operates seven upscale department stores located primarily in the Seoul region, as well as 112 E-Marts comprising the largest and most successful discount store chain in Korea. Through its subsidiary Shinsegae International, Shinsegae is also a leading fashion distributor in Korea and manages and operates nine freestanding international luxury-brand stores - including Armani, Coach, Dolce & Gabbana, Escada and St. John flagship stores in Seoul - and approximately 250 shop-in-shops.
Leslie T. Chao, Chief Executive Officer of Chelsea and chairman of the joint venture, said, "Korea's growing prosperity and increasingly sophisticated consumer tastes make it a natural market for upscale outlets. Yeoju Premium Outlets brings together a collection of brands unprecedented in Korea, a unique outdoor setting, and a location convenient to a large segment of the population of greater Seoul. We are very pleased to be opening in Korea with a first project of such high quality."
Source: Simon Property Group
